A rash of hate speech at the University of San Diego is prompting some soul-searching at the Catholic institution.

Campus officials yesterday said six unrelated incidents have been reported on the Linda Vista campus since Feb. 3. Several involved graffiti of anti-gay terms and sexually crude language. One incident included a swastika.

The incidents have spurred discussions in classrooms and strike many as a serious breach of the school's religious values, including compassion for others.

“It's a concern,” said sophomore Anna Moreno, 19. “You wouldn't expect something like this from a Catholic campus.”

Pamela Gray Payton, an assistant vice president and spokeswoman at the university, noted that hate speech can occur on any college campus. In this case, she said, “it goes against our Catholic values and social thought.”

The university e-mailed a letter campuswide Wednesday announcing the incidents. The letter from Carmen Vazquez, vice president for student affairs, said the hate acts “tear at the fabric” of the school and “undermine our goal to build an open and inclusive community. . . . ”

Vazquez asked students, faculty members, staff and others to commit themselves to making USD “a place of welcome and respect.”

According to USD's public safety office, the first incident occurred Feb. 3 when an angry student directed an anti-gay slur at a school staff member after receiving a parking ticket. The student was referred to a campus panel for discipline.

Other reported incidents:

Feb. 8: Students find graffiti in the hall of a freshman dorm. The vandalism in Founders Hall includes a homophobic term and lewd drawings. Campus authorities classify the incident as a hate crime.

Feb. 9: A homophobic term is found written in marker on a wall near Sacred Heart Hall.

Feb. 12: A poster belonging to the campus Women's Center is defaced in what officials call a “possibly bias-motivated incident.” The first two letters of the word “women” were covered over.

Feb. 23: Anti-gay statements are found on a chalkboard in USD's legal research center. A freshman later admits writing the words and is referred to a campus panel for discipline.

Feb. 27: A hand-drawn swastika is found on the wall of the legal research center. The campus classifies the incident as a hate crime. Two other markings are found near the swastika: a Star of David and the words “We Will Survive.”

About 7,500 students attend the private university full time. There's a gay pride group on campus, along with several multicultural student organizations.

Hate crimes are against the law and USD policy, but the university also prohibits “bias incidents,” such as distributing racist fliers or voicing slurs. Violating such policies could result in expulsion.

At a recent march to celebrate campus unity, USD President Mary Lyons told students “it would be foolish to think that our university is immune to expressions of hate, inoculated against the disease of racism, homophobia and exclusion.”

Payton said professors are being encouraged to discuss the incidents with students to underscore that the events “don't represent who were are as an institution.”

Freshman Peter Menne, 19, said the issue came up yesterday in his Catholic theology class. “Hate crimes are hate crimes,” he said. “It's a serious offense.”